You can install Yii in two ways, using [Composer](http://getcomposer.org/) or by downloading an archive file.
The former is the preferred way, as it allows you to install new [extensions](structure-extensions.md) or update Yii by simply running a single command.
The former is the preferred way, as it allows you to install new [extensions](extend-creating-extensions.md) or update Yii by simply running a single command.
> Note: Unlike with Yii 1, standard installations of Yii 2 results in both the framework and an application skeleton being downloaded and installed.
